Sherlock Holmes (2013 TV series)

Sherlock Holmes («Шерлок Холмс») is a Russian television series based on the Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle produced by Russia-1 Channel. It premiered in November 2013, and consists of eight stories, which were broadcast as sixteen episodes. Some of the stories have never been adapted before. It was the last adaptation with Andrei Panin, who died before he completed the dubbing for the role of John Watson.

Contents

The story is set in England in the 19th century. Twenty-seven year old Sherlock Holmes meets Dr John Watson, an experienced doctor who has just returned from the war in Afghanistan. In order to save money, they share a flat in central London with Mrs Hudson. Watson is surprised to learn that his new friend is a private detective. The Doctor realises that he is becoming involved in an investigation, led by Holmes. Considering his young friend to be a genius, Watson decides to write about the detective's talent, and discloses the mysteries to the whole world in his stories, often embellishing events as he goes.

Sherlock Holmes smokes cigarettes, but Watson comes up with the idea of the famous pipe for effect. Later, he even tries to get Holmes to smoke it for real. The two are often invited to take part in investigations by an inspector from Scotland Yard, Inspector Lestrade (Mikhail Boyarsky), whose search for the perpetrator often comes to a standstill. The genius investigator and the Doctor confront extraordinary villains: Moriarty (Alexei Gorbunov) and the charming Irene Adler (Lyanka Gryu).

The idea for the series was first announced in 2009, shortly before the release of Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes; however, the selection of the director and actors was much delayed, and the première was therefore put off for three years. The official production of the series began in 2011.

All surveys of Victorian England were held in eight months of filming in Russia, and the filming took place in the vicinity of St. Petersburg – Vyborg, Kronstadt, Pushkin, Gatchina and Ivangorod. In total, the work on Sherlock Holmes, launched in September 2011, lasted 161 days of shooting. The filming was completed in May, 2012, and the production was completed in late October of that same year.

Influenced by Guy Ritchie's film,[citation needed] the role of the heroine, Irene Adler, was also expanded on during the show. Her love affair with Sherlock Holmes is one of the series' main storylines. She was portrayed by actress Lyanka Gryu. Kavun has also said he only plans to use the motives of the original stories, but will recreate the stories almost from scratch. The series will also assume that Watson's descriptions of the crimes have been embellished. Later he will try to adjust reality to his fantasies. As an example, Holmes' famous pipe will be replaced by cigarettes.

Unlike most adaptations of Sherlock Holmes, the Sherlock in this adaptation is younger than Dr Watson by 15 years. The filming was completed in May 2012, and the series is expected to aired in 2013 on channel Russia-1.

Dr John Watson is a former military officer just arrived in London, after been wounded during his service in Afghanistan as medical officer. Alone without friends and family he starts looking for a flat, but soon he meets a stranger, a young man who seems to disturb the work of local policemen from Scotland Yard and their chief, Inspector Lestrade. The young man describes himself as a private detective named Sherlock Holmes, together they decide to share a flat, but Watson soon realises that he might put his life in danger by sharing a flat with his new friend.

Peter Small, an old friend of Dr Watson, dies while visiting Watson in his flat at Baker street. Holmes tries to find the murderer but begins to believe that Small was connected to a Band of Cabmen that were committing crimes without been caught. The only clue to them is an old picture that was taken years ago, during their studies. But after a young woman named Irene Adler comes to visit Sherlock in his flat the picture disappears.

A photographer is dead in a bomb explosion in central London, and Holmes has to find the connection between the stolen picture and the bombing. He is soon informed about the hijacking of Irene Adler and understands that he has to sacrifice something in exchange for her release.

Sir Reginald Musgrave contacts Holmes asking for help. He is scared and is on the verge of a nervous breakdown due to the fact that he is 33 years old, which means he need to pass a mystical rite of passage, after which he will become the full owner of the entire inheritance of the Musgrave family. During the same ceremony Reginald's father was murdered. In Musgrave Castle in Northern Scotland, Holmes and Watson discover the encrypted key to the treasures of Charlemagne, which according to legend is hidden in the castle.

After Watson publishes his memoirs about Sherlock Holmes, alongside with his partner he becomes more and more famous in London, but soon Sherlock and Watson are facing eviction from their apartment in Baker Street. Meanwhile, a redheaded lord, who learned about the Holmes' abilities, decides to ask for help. On the same day at the National Bank a remarkable incident occurs; Someone named Ebenezer Buckley comes to trade a suitcase of bills in exchange for pure gold. When Buckley comes out of the bank, the police suddenly appeared and kill him. Holmes makes the assumption that there is a direct link between the redheaded man and Mr Buckley's death, which is only part of the bigger cunning plan of someone who decides to undermine the economy of the British Kingdom.

During a Christmas party organised at the estate of Count Brachear, the organiser is killed under unknown circumstances. Holmes and Dr Watson are called to deal with the case. Watson is extremely surprised that Holmes manipulates the evidence and leads Inspector Lestrade to the wrong conclusion. During the investigation Holmes receives a message from a mysterious woman, a call for help from Irene Adler. Ignoring Watson's warnings, Sherlock Holmes goes to find and rescue Irene, even though he knows that it could be at the cost of his own life.

Three years after Holmes' death, Dr Watson is married to Mrs Hudson and his stories about the famous detective have been successfully reissued. A small memorial museum has opened at the house on Baker Street. But life is boring without incidents and cases. So when the doctor comes across a young girl with a request to disclose the reason for the death of her lover, Watson tries to solve the case. Soon he discover that the murder occurred after the disappearance of secret documents. Dr Watson realises that he need a reliable partner, and surprisingly he finds one.